Better energy source

April 27, 2004

To the editor:

First, let me state my position. I am for the wind farms.

I was raised in Somerset County and graduated from what was then Meyersdale Area High School, grew up in Sand Patch and still retain my land in Larimer and Greenville Townships. I have a keen interest in what is happening in my home county and would like to see a revitalization of the economy there.

All this to say that I see the wind turbines as part of that economic revitalization. Their presence contributes to the tax base, and, in the case of Meyersdale, helps to offset the higher costs of maintaining the water and sewerage system there. I understand that FLP will be handing over 10 percent of the profits from the sale of electricity to the community at large.

Human beings impact the environment and there is always a downside. Strip mines carve into the hills and may pollute the water. Men die and are injured in mine shafts. Cattle produce gases from their waste that effects the atmosphere. When the railroads came through Somerset County, rights of landowners were negated through eminent domain and they were forced to sell their land, sometimes for railroads that were never built. Ever heard of the Connellsville Uniontown and Wheeling Railroad? Cinders from the steam locomotives covered newly washed clothes on the line, got into eyes, and started fires in the dryness of summer.

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Now we are being made aware of the problem of mercury as a by product of the burning of coal, a means by which much of the electricity is generated. The April 5 issue of the U.S. News and World Report tells us "As coal burns, it releases traces of mercury that waft out of smokestacks. Much of this mercury stays airborne for up to two years and spreads around the globe." The article, "Who'll stop the mercury rain?" adds… "some is emitted as a water soluble compound formed when the mercury combines with chlorine, and element most often found in coal from the eastern states." To bring this issue down from the abstract, it is noted one study found fetus-harming levels of mercury in 8 percent of the U.S. women of child bearing age.

Not only do the burning of fossil fuels produce changes in the atmosphere, but the extraction produces toxic waste. In the Ecuador, near the community of San Carlos, there are eight cancers that exceed the community's historical levels. TexPet, a subsidiary of what was once Texaco, drew 1.5 billion barrels of oil from that area. This is not to place blame. It is only to say that there are environmental consequences beyond the burning of fuels. Whenever possible, we should lessen our dependence on oil for both and environmental and political reasons.

Twelve states, including California (20 percent), Nevada, (15 percent) and Maine (30 percent) have renewable requirements for electricity production. The European Union has a goal of 22 percent renewables by the year 2010.

Many take the position that wind turbines are inefficient producers of electricity. Atomic reactors are the most efficient means of producing electricity, but the experience of Three Mile Island has to give pause, as does the problem of disposing of nuclear waste. Then, in these times, there is the issue of protecting these plants from terrorists.

All in all, I see the wind turbines as one of the more benign energy sources. Science can become an ally. For example, creatures do communicate warnings to each other. Perhaps a device duplicating the sonar warning that bats may use to signal distress could be set among the wind turbines. Lights atop the towers of the turbines warn the night migrating birds as well as airplanes. The services of naturalists could be employed.

As with all things, moderation is the key. The Somerset County commissioners are to be commended for the regulations promulgated. These regulations are flexible, giving the landowner the ability to negotiate with his or her neighbor while also setting limitations on the placement of the wind turbines.

Dissatisfactions are innate to compromise. However, in light of human circumstance, it is the best that we can hope for.